Portfolio Guide

An online portfolio allows you to showcase who you are and what you’re capable of. Whether you’re a freelancer looking to impress potential clients, highlighting your creative abilities to employers, growing your personal brand, or boosting your online presence, a polished portfolio site will help you shine!Note the difference between a resume and a cover letter:

Why Create a Portfolio?

It’s more than a collection of your work—it’s a powerful tool that:

  • Demonstrates your skills and abilities
  • Provides tangible proof of your experience
  • Tells your story in a professional, cohesive way
  • Helps you stand out to employers, clients, and collaborators

What to Include

Campaign strategies, press releases, media kits, copywriting samples, creative briefs, case studies, and writing samples

  • Tip: Show your understanding of target audiences and your ability to craft messaging that resonates.
  • Graphic Design: Logos, signage, drawings, packaging projects, corporate identity, etc. that demonstrate Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign, effective typeface selection and understanding of visual hierarchy.

News articles, feature stories, video packages, podcast segments, news scripts, writing samples

  • Tip: Display a variety of formats (written, audio, video) to show your versatility.

UX/UI design projects, AR/VR experiences, coding demos, prototypes, user testing results, case studies

  • Tip: Emphasize the process (research, testing, iteration) as much as the final product

Short films, screenplays, storyboards, cinematography reels, production stills, editing samples, behind-the-scenes work, and links to finished projects

  • Tip: Organize your work by genre, role (director, editor, etc.) or project type
  • TV/Screen Writing Tracks: will be an offline/print portfolio. All scripts must be in “Final Draft” or in a comparable software (free program Celtx)
  • TV Writing: spec script of existing show (comedy/drama) + original pilot (comedy/drama)
  • Screenwriting: short film sample, feature length film script

Presentations, public speaking videos, research papers, leadership projects

  • Tip: Highlight your communication style and ability to adapt to different contexts

Get Started

Your Goal: Think about what you want your portfolio to accomplish. Are you trying to get a job, showcase your freelance work, or highlight your creative range? Make sure everything in your portfolio aligns with that main goal.

Your Audience: Consider who will be looking at your portfolio. Are they potential employers, clients, or collaborators? Tailor the tone, design, and content to resonate with them.

Your Best Work, Not All Work: Be selective. Include only your strongest work that shows off your skills and versatility. Quality beats quantity—employers and clients will appreciate focused, thoughtful examples.

Show the Story & Share the Process: Don’t just post work—add context! What was the project’s goal? What was your role? What tools and techniques did you use? How did you tackle challenges? If possible, include outcomes (like metrics or impact) to help paint a fuller picture.

Photojournalists & Filmmakers: Organize by story or project—don’t bury your best photo series or film work in a generic folder.

Graphic & Product Designers: Create separate sections for branding, UX/UI, illustration, or 3D models, depending on your focus.

Broadcasters: Include video and audio samples, demo reels, or highlight reels to show your voice and on-camera presence.

Organization & Flow: Make your portfolio easy to navigate. Use clear sections, consistent design, and a logical flow so that your visitors can quickly understand your work.

Visual Appeal: Your work should shine! Use high-quality images and videos, clean layouts, and consistent typography and color schemes to keep your portfolio visually engaging.

Keep it Fresh & Relevant: Focus on the kind of work you want to do more of. If you’re moving into documentary filmmaking, highlight that—even if you have strong past work in advertising, make sure your doc style pieces lead.

Platform & Longevity: Choose a platform that best fits your medium needs. Some portfolio sites are better for images while others are better suited to words. Make sure the one you choose is easy to update and built to last. See below for more details on Types of Websites.

Contact & Personality: Don’t forget to include a way for people to reach you—email, LinkedIn, or a simple contact form. A short, authentic “About Me” section helps you stand out and share your creative voice.

A well-organized portfolio is easy to navigate and makes a lasting impression. Here’s a recommended structure and pages to include:

Domain Names

  • Choose something straight-forward, preferably your name. If you have a common name, then add a word which describes what you do.
  • Reminder: Domain names are renewed every year or so. Once you buy it, you reserve it, but then you must pay every year to renew it.

Home/ Landing Page

  • Brief Intro: Who you are and what you’re passionate about
  • High-level overview of what you do, your skills, key professional information
  • Engaging visuals or a reel clip (if applicable)

About Me

  • Bio: Include your background, career interests, and unique strengths. The goal here is to show your personality, your niche interests, and what drives you to do great work.
  • “If possible, use your medium to tell your story. For example, broadcast journalists and film students can use a video bio. PR students and journalists could write a compelling narrative for their bio.” – BU
  • A high-quality photo of yourself (optional but recommended)

Portfolio / Work Samples

  • Divide by category, project type, or skill area
  • For each project include:
  • Title & brief description (problem/ challenge/ solution)
  • Your role and contribution
  • Outcomes (metrics, awards, impact)
  • Visuals, videos, or links (ensure they are high-quality and relevant)

Resume/Experience

  • Include your updated resume or link to your LinkedIn Profile
  • You can also list major achievements, internships, and leadership roles
  • Provide an email you check frequently
  • Consider adding links to your professional social media (LinkedIn, X, TikTok/Instagram – if you’re an influencer and care to share).

Pro Tips

  • Keep it clean: Use simple layouts and consistent fonts/ colors
  • Keep it updated: Replace older work with new and relevant projects
  • Keep it focused: Highlight your best work and what you’re most proud of.
  • Showcase Your Creativity
  • Make sure your portfolio is MOBILE-FRIENDLY- do NOT try to code your website from scratch.

Resources & Tools

Wix

WordPress

Adobe Portfolio – free with your University of Miami student subscription to Adobe Creative Suite

Behance 

Canva

Adobe Creative Cloud

Figma  

Pixeden

Unblast

Mr. Mockup

Mockup World

  • Current Students: Adobe Portfolio – hosting included with your CaneID 
  • Advertising Management: Faculty pushing for use of Canva / Google Slides 

GoDaddy

Dotster 

Alumni Examples

Broadcast Journalism

Gracie Palmer

Classic example of strong on-camera talent reel with standups/live shots, PKGs, anchoring.

Derryl Barnes

Reels can be separated for different job applications. For example, news vs. sports.

Katelyn Kucharski

Good example of how producers who aren’t on camera can showcase their work.

Advertising

Junior Portfolios
Well-crafted freshman portfolios created with Adobe Portfolio, available to all UM students through their Creative Cloud subscription.

Jose Serrano Brenes

https://pascale-designs.com/contact

Pascale Elissetche

Strategy Portfolios

Portfolios that highlight strategic thinking, brand planning, and campaign development by Advertising students.

Charlie Goldman
Squarespace

Elana Friedman
Canva

Portfolio of the Year Winners
Awarded annually to standout portfolios created by graduating Advertising seniors at the School of Communication.

Sara Kelly
2025 Winner
Squarespace

Abby Pak
2024 Winner
Wix

Giovanni Aprigliano
2023 Winner
Webflow

Katrina Schmidt
2021 Winner
Squarespace

Public Relations

Social Media Portfolios
From content calendars to campaign analytics, these portfolios reflect the skills needed to thrive in today’s social media landscape.

Nellie Johnson
Canva

https://prestonchazulle.com/portfolio

Preston Chazulle
Canva

Interactive & Immersive Media

Tirsa Fernandez’s

Wix

Ryan Lee

Self-coded

Olivia van Bochove

WordPress

Hannah Belton

Webflow